Method of and means for joining sheets together



Sept. 21, 1965 E. L. ERICKSON METHOD OF AND MEANS FOR JOINING SHEETS TOGETHER Filed Feb. 23, 1965 I NVEN TOR. Edna Lfl'z'cksan United States Patent 3,207,199 METHOD OF AND MEANS FOR JOINING SHEETS TOGETHER Edna L. Erickson, 15W320 George St., Bensenville, Ill. Filed Feb. 23, 1965,.Ser. No. 434,528 6 Claims. (Cl. 150-30) This application is a continuation-in-part of my application Serial No. 304,l3 6,filed Aug. 23, 1963, now US. Patent No. 3,186,461, granted June *1, 1965.

The invention relates to improvements in the method of and means for joining two or more pieces of sheet material together and is more particularly concerned with the novel construction and assembly of the pocket structure in a purse or like article. The structure is particularly applicable in instances where the material of the parts to be joined is comprised of fabric sheet material coated on one surface only with a plastic film, such as for example, vinyl. Such coated material is diflicult if not impossible of being adhesively bonded securely plastic face to plastic face, consequently difficulty has been encountered when seeking to fabricate articles entirely from such material. One example of such fabrication is when a pocket is being formed in a purse of like article made of such material and wherein the pocket is formed by continuous folds in a sheet of such plastic coated material. Some of the folds are such that two opposed faces of the material constitute the plastic faces thereof and it is these faces which are to be secured one to the other. Such securing is effected by the herein disclosed method and means.

It is therefore an object of the invention to provide novel means for joining two plastic surfaces one to the other face to face.

Another object is to provide a novel method for effecting such joining.

Another object is to provide novel seam structures for joining two sheets of material face to face in selected areas thereof.

Another object is to fabricate a seam structure that is simple to assemble and very eflicient in use.

The structure and method by means of which the above noted and other advantages and objects of the invention are attained will be described in the following specification, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, showing a preferred illustrative embodiment of the invention, in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a fragment of a purse or other article having a pocket attached thereto and embodying the features of the invention.

FIG. 2 is a detail sectional view taken on line 22 of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged elevational view partly broken away, showing joining of the inner pocket wall to the purse liner.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view of one of the vertical seams taken along line 4-4 of FIG. 3.

FIG. 5 is an enlarged sectional perspective view of the bottom seam.

In the exemplary disclosure in the accompanying drawings, the purse or like article selected for purposes of illustration, includes an outer wall and an inner wall or liner 11. The walls 10, 11 are farbicated from plastic coated sheets, such sheets having a fabric face 1 on one side and a plastic face coating 12a on the other side (FIG. 4). In assembly, the plastic surface 12a of the liner 11 is disposed on the inside of the purse and the pocket 13 is secured to this wall 11.

As best shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the pocket 13 is fabricated from a single substantially rectangular shaped sheet of such plastic coated material folded over upon itself in such manner that the back face of its back wall 14 is Patented Sept. 21, 1965 the plastic coated face. The pocket, when formed, is comprised of said back wall 14 anda downwardly extending front wall 15.

It should be noted that the opposed faces of the liner wall 11 of the purse and the pocket back wall 14 are the plastic coated faces of said material. It is therefore virtually impossible to adhesively bond these surfaces securely together along a line contact with ordinary bond adhesives. Accordingly, novel means is provided to effect such bonding, which means while basically alike, embodies in this disclosure two distinct form of seams.

Specifically, as to one form of seam, the walls 11 and 14 are initially-provided with one or more sets of registering vertical slits 18 (FIGS. 3 and 4) preferably one adjacent each end of the pocket back wall and one or more between said end slits. In the illustrated embodiment there are three such sets of vertical slits 18 which locate the points of vertical joining so as to, in this instance, divide the finished pocket into two compartments 13a opening on their upper edge. As to the other form of seam, the liner wall 11 is formed with a horizontal slit 19 closely adjacent to but inwardly of the bottom edge of the outside pocket wall 15. As will now be explained all these slits function to receive novel means for attaching back wall 14 of the pocket to liner wall 11.

Referring now to the seam formed by use of a set of vertical slits 18, the structure is best shown in FIGS. 3 and 4. As there illustrated, two strips 21 of bias cut fabric material are threaded edgewise through said set of vertical slits. The strips are folded in a direction away from the slit to overlie the fabric surfaces of the sheet material on each side of the aligned slits and the folded over margins are then adhesively secured to the underlying fabric surfaces of the related sheets. These strips therefor constitute a physical bond between the two sheets thus holding them securely and firmly and permanently one ot the other in the areas of the slits through which the strips extend. These joinings form a pocket divided into two compartments. If more compartments are desired, more such seams are provided.

The slit 19 underlying the marginal edge of the outside pocket wall 15 is located coincidental wtih the free bottom edge of the back wall 14 of said pocket. To utilize this slit in the securement of the back wall edge margin to the liner wall, a strip 22 of bias cut fabric is threaded edgewise through said slit and its projecting marginal edges 22a are folded over against the fabric surface of the liner wall and against the fabric surface of the edge margin of the pocket back wall all as best shown in FIG. 5. These strip margins are adhesively bonded to the respective wall surfaces. Because of the presence of an unsecured free edge of the slit 19 resulting from the use of a single strip 22 of fabric material, a second strip 23 of like material which is of greater Width than the folded margin 22a of strip 22, is laid over the seam and is adhesively bonded to the said strip margin 22a and to the underlying surface of the lower wall on each side of said slot 19.

After the seams are fabricated, the fabric surface of the pocket outside wall 15 may be adhesively secured to the exposed fabric face of the inner pocket wall 14 so as to cover the seam structures.

Although the invention has been disclosed and described as being applicable to the forming of a pocket structure, it is to be understood that either seam structure can be made useful in the joining of any two sheets of material wherein said sheets are surfaced in a manner to resist direct bonding by adhesive.

Although I have described a preferred embodiment of my invention, in considerable detail, it will be understood further that the description thereof is intended to be illustrative, rather than restrictive, as many details of 3 the structure disclosed may be modified or changed without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention. Accordingly, I do not desire to be restricted to the exact construction described.

I claim:

1. A structure for joining two sheets together face to face inwardly of their edges which comprises, a slit in each sheet with the slits in register one with the other, a strip of fabric material extended edgewise through said registering slits, said strip having its longitudinal margins extend outwardly beyond the faces of said sheets and being arranged to overlie the outside surfaces respectively of said sheets, and an adhesive bonding said margins to said sheets.

2. The structure recited in claim 1, in which the fabric strips are cut on a bias.

3. The structure recited in claim 1, in which the strips are substantially coextensive with the length of the slits.

4. The structure recited in claim 1 in which there are two strips and their margins are turned in opposite directions to overlie opposite margins of the sheets.

5. A structure for joining two sheets together face to face inwardly of one edge of a first of said sheets, a slit in the second of said sheets coincidental with an edge of the first sheet, a strip of fabric material threaded edgewise through said slit, said strip having one of its marginal edges overlying and adhesively secured to the outside surface of the said second sheet adjacent to the slit 4;- and its other margin overlying and adhesively secured to the outside surface of the first sheet adjacent to its said edge, and a second strip bridging the slit and :adhesively secured to the marginal edge of said strip overlying the slit sheet and to the uncovered marginal edge of said slit sheet adjacent to said strip.

6. A pocket construction comprising a sheet of materialupon which the pocket is mounted, a second sheet of material folded to provide a front wall and a back wall, a slit in said mounting sheet and a slit in the said back wall in registering alignment therewith, at least one strip of fabric material threaded edgewise through said aligned slits, said strip having its longitudinal margins folded over the respective outer faces of said mounting sheet and back wall and adhesively secured thereto, and an adhesive bonding the front wall to said back wall and covering said strip.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,536,839 5/25 Billis.

2,202,977 4/40 Woodal 2-275 X 3,026,225 3/ 62 Ostby 2-275 X GEORGE O. RALST ON, Primary Examiner.

JOSEPH R. LECLAIR, Examiner. 

6. A POCKET CONSTRUCTION COMPRISING A SHEET OF MATERIAL UPON WHICH THE POCKET IS MOUNTED, A SECOND SHEET OF MATERIAL FOLDED TO PROVIDE A FRONT WALL AND A BACK WALL, A SLIT IN SAID MOUNTING SHEET AND A SLIT IN THE SAID BACK WALL IN REGISTERING ALIGNMENT THEREWITH, AT LEAST ONE STRIP OF FABRIC MATERIAL THREADED EDGEWISE THROUGH SAID ALIGNED SLITS, SAID STRIP HAVING ITS LONGITUDINAL MARGINS FOLDED OVER THE RESPECTIVE OUTER FACES OF SAID MOUNTING SHEET AND BACK WEALL AND ADHESIVELY SECURED THERETO, SAND AN ADHESIVE BONDING THE FRONT TO SAID BACK WALL AND COVERING SAID STRIP. 